E-Financial
BudgIT Queries Irregularities in FG’s Proposed 2025 Budget

BudgIT, a civic-tech organisation promoting transparency, accountability, and effective service delivery in Nigeria, has said that it has observed certain legacy issues with the federal government proposed 2025 budget.
BudgIT has therefore has called on the National Assembly to proactively address the irregularities, exercise its “Powers of the Purse” responsibly, allow robust public participation in the budget review process, and ensure that the approved budget reflects the needs and preferences of Nigerians through job creation, poverty reduction, and inclusive broad-based economic growth.
The organisation in a statement by Nancy Odimegwu, its communications associate, noted that a review of the performance of the Federal Government budget over recent years has revealed that the Federal Government often falls way off the mark in its macroeconomic assumptions, which pose serious fiscal risks leading to severe budget financing challenges, additional unforeseen government obligations, and a significant increase in public debt.
The government’s inflation projection of 15% in the 2025 fiscal year appears grossly unrealistic, it said, considering that inflation, which stood at 34.6% as of November 2024, has been driven not only by monetary factors such as exchange rate and money supply but also by the constant increase in food and energy prices—both of which the government has not created a clear roadmap to resolving in the short term.
While the oil price projection of $75 per barrel appears feasible given the global outlook of $70 to $73 per barrel, we strongly advise the National Assembly to resist the urge to increase the oil price benchmark to create fiscal space for their budgetary insertions, a practice observed in previous years.
“Recall that in previous years, BudgIT has identified several budgetary insertions made by the National Assembly that deviate from the federal government’s constitutional mandate and priorities and are assigned to MDAs that have neither the capacity nor the mandate to implement the inserted projects. In 2021, BudgIT observed that 5,601 capital projects were added to the Appropriation Bill during the review process by the National Assembly,” it said .
“In 2022, it increased to 6,462 projects across 37 Mother Ministries and 340 MDAs, while in 2024, 7,447 insertions amounting to a staggering N2.24 trillion were found in the budget. While the Constitution grants the National Assembly the authority to appropriate funds, it often modifies the Executive’s proposed budget to distort its original intent and disconnect it from the nation’s long-term development agenda. Many inserted projects usually lack proper conceptualisation, design, and cost estimation, undermining their effectiveness and feasibility. We believe that the legislature must exercise this power with the utmost responsibility. This responsibility, which cannot be overstated, entails ensuring resource efficiency, eliminating waste, and aligning budgetary decisions with the nation’s long-term economic development goals.
“Also, we have observed that the 2025 proposed budget breakdown submitted to the National Assembly for review and approval and published on the Budget Office website omits the breakdown of some MDAs, commissions, and councils, such as the National Judicial Council (₦341.63 billion), and TETFUND (₦940.5 billion). The budgets of over 60 government-owned enterprises (GOEs), including the Nigeria Ports Authority, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), etc., were conspicuously absent from the 2025 Proposed Budget.
“Furthermore, a combined ₦2.49 trillion has been allocated to five regional development commissions (Niger Delta: ₦776.53 billion; South West: ₦498.40 billion; North East: ₦290.99 billion; North West: ₦585.93 billion; and South East: ₦341.27 billion) under the umbrella of personnel costs. This approach obscures the true nature of these commissions’ operational expenses. For context, the Ministry of Interior, responsible for overseeing the Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigeria Correctional Service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Fire Service, and their governing board, has a significantly lower recurrent non-debt expenditure allocation of N648.84 billion. This amount covers personnel and overhead costs for the entire ministry and its agencies. Lumping development commission budgets under personnel costs raises concerns about transparency and accountability. It hinders proper scrutiny of how these funds are utilised and whether they effectively achieve their intended development objectives.
“More worrisome is the fact that the 2025 budget notably omits funding for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road, a capital-intensive infrastructure project. This omission implies that if funding for this project materialises, it will likely necessitate reallocating funds from other critical projects, potentially hindering their implementation and impacting the budget’s credibility. It is worth noting that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent pronouncement regarding the retirement package of military generals, which includes the provision of a bulletproof SUV, fully paid foreign medical treatment, $20,000 as estacode for medical trips, and payments for domestic help, contradicts his previous commitments to reduce the cost of governance and welfare packages to top-ranked public officials and civil servants. Such provisions not only inflate the budget and widen the fiscal deficit but may also demoralise lower-ranking military personnel, who lack adequate health insurance and retirement benefits despite their higher exposure to combat risks.
“As the National Assembly reviews the 2025 Proposed Budget, BudgIT appeals to the 360 Honourable Members of the Federal House of Representatives and 109 Distinguished Senators of the Nigerian Senate to prioritise national interest over personal or parochial considerations and ensure that the approved budget stimulates economic activities and macroeconomic stability, allocates resources to foster economic growth and development, equitably distributes resources to reduce poverty and inequality, and caters to the most vulnerable Nigerians.”
E-Financial
Nigeria Received $52Bn from Afreximbank in 10 Years – Oramah

Prof. Benedict Oramah, president , Africa Export-Import Bank, (Afreximbank), has revealed that Nigeria is the highest recipient of intervention funds from the bank, amounting to $52 billion in the last 10 years.
Prof. Oramah made the disclosure in Abuja during the signing ceremony of the Host Agreement between Nigeria and Bank ahead of its annual general meeting which hold in June 2025
He said “Nigeria is the largest recipient of disbursements from the Afreximbank amounting to $52bn out of the $140 billion which was disbursed on the continent in the last 10 years
“Also, Nigeria is among the first beneficiaries of our transformative projects which include the African Quality Assurance Center launched in Ogun state and we have also begun work in two other states of Kaduna and Imo,” he said.
Speaking on other developmental projects of the Bank in Nigeria, he further explained that the “Afreximbank Africa Trade Center will be the first on the continent to be opened and launched on April 10 2025.as well as the African Medical Center for Excellence will be opened on June 5 2025 estimated to cost $750 million with the potential to convert Abuja to a medical tourism hub as it consist of a medical school and a center for disease research.
“Also, the Bank has provided funding to produce 1.2mbd refining and in Dangote, BUA and Port Harcourt refinery as part of the Bank’s strategic plan to make sure that golf of guinea becomes a major refining hub,”
Prof. Oramah further stated that the theme of this year’s meeting will be ‘Building the Future in Decades of resilience,’ and will feature about 6,000 delegates compromising of captains of industries as well as heads of governments
Earlier in his remarks, Wale Edun, minister of Finance and Coordinating minister of the economy, stated that President Tinubu has granted presidential approval to host the Bank’s 2025 Annual meeting in the FCT in June this year
E-Financial
E-Payment Transactions Down 3.14% to 119.84trn in January – FDC

Transactions through electronic payment (e-payment) channels in the country declined by 3.14 per cent to N119.84 trillion in January 2025 from the N123.72 trillion recorded in the previous month, a report by Financial Derivatives Company Limited (FDC) has shown.
Although the firm, which cites e-payment transactions data obtained from the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), did not proffer reasons for the decline, it projected that the value of transactions through e-payment channels will likely rise to N125.73 trillion and N126.43 trillion in February and March this year respectively, driven by factors such as improved services from payment system operators, delayed implementation of the cybersecurity tax and more people jettisoning cash for electronic transfers.
As the firm put it, “in Q1’2025 e-payment transactions will be buoyed by: payment system efficiencies; delay of the cyber tax; less cash and more transfers.”
In an earlier report, FDC had noted that the total value of epayment transactions “has been increasing steadily since July 2023.”
Indeed, data recently released by the NIBSS indicates that the value of electronic payment transactions in the country hit a record N1.07 quadrillion in 2024 compared with N6003.36 trillion in the previous year.
Analysts note that there has been increased adoption of epayment in the country in recent years, occasioned by factors such as the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) initiatives to promote the cashless policy, the impact of the 2020 Covid-19 crisis and the naira redesign programme introduced by the apex bank in late 2022.
In its report titled, “Instant Payments – 2020 Annual Statistics”, the NIBSS, for instance, stated: “The Covid-19 pandemic changed the e-payments landscape, accelerating the adoption of instant payments as more people transitioned to electronic channels for funds exchange in the wake of government-imposed lockdowns.”
New Telegraph reports that implementation challenges with the CBN’s naira redesign policy led to an acute shortage of cash, which crippled economic activities across the country in the first quarter of 2023, thereby forcing bank customers, who were unable to access cash at the time, to adopt e-payment channels.
In fact, there are indications that lingering cash scarcity in the banking system was responsible for the reported surge in the value of Point of Sale (PoS) transactions last year as more people became banking agents or PoS merchants to meet increased demand for cash from bank customers who were frustrated by their inability to withdraw cash from ATMs or banking halls.
According to latest NIBSS data, the value of PoS transactions rose by 69 per cent to N18 trillion in 2024, from N10.74 trillion in 2023.
As part of its efforts to tackle the lingering cash scarcity, the CBN has in recent times rolled out strict measures aimed at ensuring that Deposit Money Banks and PoS agents comply with its cash deployment regulations.
Last month, the apex bank fined nine Deposit Money Banks N150 million each for failing to ensure cash availability via Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) during the 2024 festive season.
Also, the CBN, on December 17, issued a circular on “cashout limits for agent banking transactions,” which saw it restricting PoS agents to a daily transaction limit of N1.2 million and also introducing a daily transaction limit of N100,000 per customer for cashout transactions conducted by the agents.
E-Financial
FG Takes Full Ownership of Keystone Bank

Federal government has taken full ownership of Keystone Bank, according to a statement by the bank posted on its X handle on Tuesday evening.
It read, “Keystone Bank Limited wishes to clarify media report of a judgement by the Lagos State Special Offences Court, sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, regarding the status of the former shareholders of the bank: Sigma Golf Nigeria Limited and Alhaji Umaru H. Modibbo.
“Recall that on January 10, 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the dissolution of the previous Board and Management of the Bank for corporate governance breaches. The CBN followed this action with the appointment of a new Board and Management for the Bank.
“Subsequently the Federal Government through the EFCC filed a court action at the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, against the former owners challenging the acquisition of the bank. At the sitting of the court today, February 11, 2025, the court ordered the forfeiture of the shares of the Bank previously held by the shareholders in favour of the Federal Government of Nigeria. The implication of this judgment is that Keystone Bank Limited is now fully owned by the Federal Government f Nigeria.”
Keystone Bank is entering a new era of stability and growth. Our foundation is solid, our future is bright, and our commitment to you remains stronger than ever. We move forward—together. #KeystoneBank #WeGrowTogether pic.twitter.com/aHV9XVd4T6
Describing the development as a “significant milestone in our journey,” the bank said the move is “paving the way for a seamless recapitalization process”.
“With this clarity, we are well-positioned for sustained growth, stronger partnerships, and enhanced profitability. Keystone Bank continues to strengthen its balance sheet while delivering exceptional value to its teeming stakeholders,” the statement read.
“The bank maintains a strong financial position, consistently fulfilling all its obligations and adhering to all regulatory requirements. We assure our customers that the bank remains safe, healthy, strong, and resilient.”
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